The staff at the University of Guyana at a meeting yesterday at the Turkeyen Campus voted overwhelmingly to support a No Confidence Petition in the Vice Chancellor, Professor Jacob Opadeyi, a release from the UGSSA and the UGWU said last night.
The No Confidence Petition, which was first floated in April 2015 and drafted by a member of the academic staff, was wholeheartedly supported by the executives and membership of the University of Guyana Senior Staff Association (UGSSA) and the University of Guyana Workers Union (UGWU), the release said.
The release said that it was agreed at the meeting that the petition would be tendered to the current University Council as well as the impending Council, which is scheduled to be convened in July 2015. It was also agreed that the Petition would be dispatched to the Minister of Education Dr. Rupert Roopnaraine.
The staff also expressed no confidence in the two Deputy Vice-Chancellors, Dr. Barbara Reynolds and Dr. Elizabeth Ramlal.
The petition accused Opadeyi of the following among other things:
- Disregard for the Terms of Resumption Agreement signed March 2, 2015 by the University Administration and the two staff unions;
- Eroding the powers of the Academic Board;
- Compromising academic quality and integrity;
- A dictatorial, vindictive, micromanagement leadership style;
- Varying terms and condition of work without consultation with employees;
- Failure to honour contracts with employees;
- Circumvention and breach of university financial systems, practices and procedures;
- Failure to provide a safe and healthy working environment;
- Unreasonable and inhumane treatment of staff;
- Failure to provide faculty and workers with basic tools of the trade;
- Failure to provide appropriate spaces, facilities and equipment for effective teaching and learning;
- Exorbitant executive cost and size with little consideration for UG’s indebtedness.
The resolve clause stated:
“With consideration for the aforementioned infractions and in the interest of the University of Guyana and the nation it serves, we petition the Council of the University of Guyana to remove Professor Opadeyi as a matter of urgency. We further petition the Minister of Education, The Honourable Dr. Rupert Roopnaraine and His Excellency President David Granger, President of the Republic of Guyana, to ensure that the Council of the University of Guyana acts in the interest of the University and the nation of Guyana.”
The unions and the administration were in a bitter standoff earlier this year that saw weeks of industrial action which affected classes.
